Theories and current research in psychology are explored to promote understanding of the field from its historical roots to its current and future directions. Students acquire a broad background in the five core areas of psychology: human development, cognition, social psychology, physiological psychology, and clinical psychology. As students progress in the major there are opportunities to work individually with faculty on research projects and for independent study in areas of particular interest, including, for example, interpersonal relationships, mental illness, psychotherapy, perception, learning, brain-behavior relationships, neuropsychology, aging, political behavior, and others. Seniors can opt to gain applied experience through a supervised practicum (internship). These experiential opportunities further enrich the University's well-rounded program of study. Students are well prepared for their next step whether it is beginning their working career or graduate study in any branch of psychology, brain science, social work, human resources, business administration, law, or other areas related to human behavior.

The psychology department offers an undergraduate major designed to ensure a full grounding in the field, a flexible minor allowing students to explore areas of passionate interest, and a Master's program in applied clinical and counseling psychology.

Honors Society

Psi Chi, the National Honors Society in Psychology

The National Honors Society in Psychology is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies and an affiliate of the American Psychological Association. Psi Chi provides students with workshops, such as resume building and G.R.E. preparation, and opportunities to volunteer in the community and on campus. Membership in Psi Chi requires that a student be registered as a psychology major or minor, have completed a minimum of 9 semester psychology hours at William Paterson, have an overall GPA of at least 3.0 and at least a 3.25 GPA in psychology. It is open to both undergraduate and graduate students. For more information, contact Dr. Holle at HolleC@wpunj.edu.

Honors Track Program

Psychology has important contributions to challenging interdisciplinary problems, and so the department collaborates with several departments to offer high achieving students opportunities to explore these in honors: Biopsychology, contact Dr. R. Benno at BennoR@wpunj.edu; Clinical Sciences, contact Dr. B. Diamond at Diamondb@wpunj.edu; Cognitive Science, contact Dr. A. Learmonth at LearmonthA@wpunj.edu; and Social Sciences, contact Dr. N. Kressel at KresselN@wpunj.edu. In addition, honors sections of psychology courses are offered each semester.